VH1 Classic Serves Up a Cornucopia of Rare Musical Holiday Delights Including U.S. Premieres of Rod Stewart and The Kinks Christmas Specials
Monday November 20, 11:51 am ET
“Third Annual UK Music Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony” Makes U.S. Premiere on VH1 Classic on Thanksgiving, November 23
NEW YORK, Nov. 20 /PRNewswire/ — They call him Father Christmas. We call him Santa Claus. But the U.K. shares the same holiday spirit with the U.S., which VH1 Classic will reveal in December when it unwraps two BBC specials never-before-seen in the States, starring Rod Stewart and The Kinks.
Taken from the BBC series “Old Grey Whistle Test,” the “Rod Stewart Christmas Concert” features one of England’s most successful singers headlining a Christmas Eve 1976 special at London’s Olympia Theatre. The one- hour show debuts on VH1 Classic on Thursday, December 21 at 8:00 PM.
Stewart performs a number of his hits as well as some rock and pop classics including “Tonight’s The Night,” “Maggie May,” “Losing You,” “Get Back,” “This Old Heart of Mine,” “The Wild Side of Life,” “Sweet Little Rock ‘n’ Roller,” “The Killing Of Georgie,” “Sailing” and “I Don’t Want To Talk About It.”
VH1 Classic presents one of the U.K.’s longest-running rock success stories, The Kinks on Thursday, December 7 at 10:00 PM during “The Kinks Christmas Concert.” Caught live at the Rainbow Theater in London on Christmas Eve 1977, The Kinks tear through many of their classic songs including “Lola,” “Sleepwalker,” “Life On The Road,” “Well Respected Man,” “Death Of A Clown,” “Sunny Afternoon,” “Waterloo Sunset,” “All Day And All Of The Night,” “Slum Kids,” “Celluloid Heroes” and “Get Back In The Line.” The group also gives a rousing rendition on their holiday classic “Father Christmas” with Paul Davies’ donned as Santa Claus.
“UK Music Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony” Toplines VH1 Classic Thanksgiving
VH1 Classic will present the U.S. premiere of the extended version of “The Third Annual UK Music Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony” on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 23 at 8:00 PM. Artists honored include Brian Wilson, Led Zeppelin, Prince, Rod Stewart, Dusty Springfield, Bon Jovi and James Brown as well as legendary Beatles producer Sir George Martin who is receiving this year’s Honorary Membership in recognition of his exceptional contribution to British music. The UK Music Hall of Fame is produced by Initial (part of Endemol) and distributed by Channel 4 International.
This year’s line up of performances and special tributes include inductee Brian Wilson and his band; British soul sensation Joss Stone and R&B legend Patti LaBelle performing two of Dusty Springfield’s greatest hits; a supergroup conducted by Sir George Martin featuring Queen’s Roger Taylor, Johnny Borrell of Razorlight, Swedish singer/songwriter Jose Gonzales and Corinne Bailey Rae. Finally, Wolfmother will perform a tribute to Led Zeppelin and James Morrison will perform a tribute to Rod Stewart.
To learn more about these series and other VH1 Classic series and specials please visit https://www.vh1classic.com.
Launched in May 2000, VH1 Classic is a 24-hour network that presents videos, concerts and music specials all day long, featuring the best of rock, soul and pop artists from the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s, including The Beatles, The Stones, Tina Turner, Led Zeppelin, Marvin Gaye, The Who, Stevie Wonder, The Police and many more. Learn more at www.vh1classic.com